Hollywood Officials Trade Heated Words

November 25, 1998|By NESREEN KHASHAN Staff Writer

HOLLYWOOD — What should have been a formality on Tuesday to name an interim city attorney turned into a shouting match between Mayor Mara Giulianti and Commissioner John Coleman over what qualities a candidate for city attorney should have.

Chief litigator Dan Abbott was selected as interim city attorney amid Giulianti's and Coleman's sparring over the role a city attorney should play.

Abbott will become interim city attorney effective in early January, when City Attorney Jamie Cole leaves to work for a private law firm in Coconut Grove.

The confrontation was sparked when Hollywood activist Steve Welsch entered the commission chambers wheeling a dolly containing four boxes of documents he said he planned to submit to the State Attorney's Office and the Attorney General's Office to be used in an investigation into the city's development and land use policies he has requested.

Mike Burnstein, deputy attorney general for the southern region said his office will not conduct an investigation.

Giulianti was angry about what she saw as the alliance between Welsch and Coleman, whom she said were trying to use the meeting to push their own agenda of selecting a more activist-oriented attorney. Coleman had told the commission that he would like the city to consider an attorney who is more responsive to the needs of Hollywood residents.

In denouncing their attempt to veer from the issue of appointing an interim attorney, Giulianti cited the city charter, which prohibits the city attorney from giving counsel to interests outside of city hall.

``Commissioner Coleman meets with groups to see how they can get my goat and how they can circumvent the system to what I think are disastrous ends.'' Giulianti snapped. ``The role of the city attorney is not to represent neighborhoods.''

Commissioner Richard Blattner told Giulianti that she needed to tighten her reins on commission meetings to ensure that other spectacles do not occur. Last week, Giulianti sparred publicly with City Manager Sam Finz at the end of a meeting over the financial package given to former Police Chief Rick Stone.

Near the close of the meeting, the commission agreed to give Abbott a 10 percent salary increase while he serves as interim city attorney, increasing his salary to $99,000. He will revert to the $90,100 yearly salary he earns as chief litigator when he returns to that position, unless he is selected as the new city attorney.

The city has posted a job opening for the city attorney job in local newspapers and trade journals. The deadline for applying for the job is late December.